Bernd Wendholt is a producer, composer, audio engineer, guitarist and keyboardist from Mildenau, Germany, who does programming in the realm of ambient world rock and soundtrack music. Today he discussed the overall meaning behind his songs, his plans for his upcoming album, and offers advice those up and coming artists who want to discover their own sound.
At age 16, Bernd began making music playing in Krautrock bands. For those of you who don’t know, Krautrock is a combination of rock and electronic music originating in Germany in the late 1960s. The genre tended to gravitate toward minimalistic arrangements. Though he enjoyed his time in these bands, Bernd had to stop making music when he reached age 30.
“I stopped making music when I was 30 years old because of my job,” said Bernd, referring to his position as CEO in a retail group. “Now, I am retired and two years ago I started again. I collaborate with some other musicians in Germany.”
Bernd’s main musical influence comes from groups of the psychedelic nature that were prevalent in the 70s. The music he makes is reflective of his life experiences and travels all around the world.
“I explain always my daily feelings or a lot of memories in my tracks,” Bernd said. “When I was young I travelled a lot in Asia like the streets of Kabul. All my tracks are very emotional instrumental stories.”
One of these tracks that invoke a sense of wide-eyed wonderment of Bernd’s worldwide travel is “Desert Wind.” It has a Middle Eastern vibe with traditional instrumentation and soothing vocal harmonies that cascade through images of a camel slugging through intense desert heat. Listen to the track below:
Bernd said his upcoming album has a release date slated for May 2016 with cooperation from famous German guitar player Volker Kaufmann. Fans can expect more international flavors to be present in this upcoming record.
One of the challenges Bernd faces is to handle the flood of musical ideas he comes up with, admitting that he is not disciplined enough to realize his ideas directly. However, from just listening to his tracks, the production and arrangements sound seamless and flawless, and the best artists are the ones who make it look easy.
Through many years of creating and recording music, Bernd has learned a thing or two about what it takes to stand out as an individual with a unique sound. Bernd offers advice for those who may be struggling to discover their own sound.
“Try to be individual, have no limits, create the sound YOU like and don`t look to the right and left side and don`t try to be a ‘star,’” said Bernd.
To stay up to date with Bernd’s music, check out his Facebook, Twitter and Soundcloud.
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